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Nike (NYSE:NKE) has been the leading brand within the sports apparel industry for a long time. Founded in the year 1964 by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight, the company has grown to become one of the world’sbiggest suppliers of athletic footwear and apparel. In addition to this, the firm is also recognised as one of the major manufacturers of sports equipment in the world. This is certainly no easy feat.

In 2014, the company brand alone was valued at an astonishing $19 billion, which stamped its name in the history books as the most valuable brand among sports businesses. More so, the company’s popularity is at staggering levels, as the company’s “Just Do It” slogan and “Swoosh” logo are widely recognised trademarks. The firm has also expanded its profile over the years through sponsoring many high-profile athletes and sports teams worldwide.

It is clear that Nike continues to succeed because of its dominant foothold on the sports apparel industry. This is regardless of whether one is considering Nike as an entire entity or just its performance on Wall Street. Nike simply dominates all. Once again, in the past year, the company was the leader in the US athletic footwear market.

In the fiscal 2015 income statement review, revenues for the company increased by 10% to $30.6 billion, and up 14% on a currency-neutral basis. Additionally, Nike’s net income rose by 22% to $3.3 billion. This reflected strong revenue growth and gross margin expansion, with the latter expanding 120 basis points to 46%. Even more importantly, diluted earnings per share for the year increased by 25% to $3.70.

On the other hand, Adidas (OTC:ADDYY) continues to nip at Nike’s heels. Long known as Nike’s fiercest adversary in the sporting industry, the German multinational corporation is currently the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second-largest in the world. According to statistics, the company appears to have thrived in the recently concluded month of January.